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HISTORICAL SKETCH OF ALASKA WITH BRIEF OUTLINE OF 


RESOURCES. 


Discovery. 


What is now the Territory of Alaska was, until 1867, a part 
of the Russian Empire and was known as Russian America. The 
name Alaska is derived from the Aleut word, Alakshak, meaning 
“a great country or continent.” Credit for the discovery of the 
Alaska coast is given to Michail Gvozdef, “geodesist,” or surveyor, 
who assumed command of an expedition originally headed by Ivan 
Gedorof and designed to secure information concerning the “great 
land” to the east of Siberia whose existence was reported by the 
Chukchi, natives inhabiting northeastern Siberia. Gvozdef is pre¬ 
sumed to have touched the co^ast of Alaska near Cape Prince of 
Wales some time during the year 1730. Information on this 
point is very meager, and the results of slight importance. 

Prior to this time, in 1728, Vitus Bering, a Danish Captain 
in the Russian Service, who was commander of what was known 
from its starting point as the first Kamchatka expedition, had 
discovered and named St. Lawrence Island and had sailed through 
Bering Strait, rounded East Cape, and proceeded westward far 
enough to establish the fact that the land reported as lying 
east of Siberia was not a part of the continent of Asia. 

The results of the first Kamchatka expedition fired the Rus¬ 
sians with a desire to know more about the great land to the 
eastward and, if possible, to discover trade routes to America. 
Accordingly the second Kamchatka expedition was organized. 
Two men figure prominently in this expedition, namely, Bering, 
who commanded the expedition, and Alexei Chirikof, second in 
command. The two vessels used in this expedition, the St. Peter 
and the St. Paul, were in charge of Bering and Chirikof re¬ 
spectively. The plan called for the two vessels to proceed together. 
However, they became separated some days after setting out from 
Avatcha Bay, the starting point of the expedition and, thereafter, 
the two commanders proceeded independently. 

On July 16, 1741, Bering sighted and named Mt. St. Elias 
and a few days later made a landing at Kayak Island, near Con¬ 
troller Bay. Chirikof sighted the Alaska coast, probably at Prince 
of Wales Island, on July 15, 1741. Bering remained but a few 
days in the region of Prince William Sound and then sailed west- 




4 


HISTORICAL SKETCH OF ALASKA 


ward along the southern coast touching at several points. He 
tell ill of scurvy, which disease had attacked the ship’s crew. 
On November 5th, his vessel was wrecked on an island later called 
Bering Island. Here Bering died, on December 8, 1741. Those 
who survived were successful in constructing another vessel 
from the wreck and returned to Kamchatka the following fall. 

Chirikof's crew also suffered greatly from scurvy and other 
diseases. His homeward journey was beset with many difficulties, 
including the massacre of two boat loads of men by the savage 
inhabitants of the country. On the return voyage he sighted many 
of the Aleutian Islands. He reached Avatcha Bay, Kamchatka, the 
point of the departure of the expedition, early in October, 1741, 
after a voyage which lasted approximately five months. 

In May, 1742, Ghirikof made another attempt to explore the 
Alaska coast but, because of unfavorable winds, turned back after 
sighting the islands at the extreme western end of the Aleutian 
chain. It was principally on the voyages of Bering and Chirikof 
that Russia based her claim to the ownership of northwestern 
America. 


Further Russian Exploration. 

Without doubt the otter and other fur-bearing animals had 
much to do with the further exploration and colonization of 
Alaska. The discovery expedition brought back- glowing tales of 
the wealth in furs that abounded in the new land and the next 
half century witnessed a number of expeditions which were con¬ 
fined mainly to the Aleutian Isalnds and the Alaska Peninsula 
and which had as their object the acquisition of wealth. In 
speaking of the part which furs played in the exploration and 
settlement of Alaska, Bancroft (History of Alaska, 1885) makes 
the following statement: “Call it science or patriotism, or pro¬ 
gress, there is this to be said about the First Russian discoveries 
in America—little would have been heard of them for some time 
to come, if ever, had it not been for the beautiful furs brought 
back from Bering Island and elsewhere. Siberia was still suffi¬ 
cient to satisfy the tsar for purposes of expatriation, and the Rus¬ 
sians were not such zealots as to undertake conquest for the sake 
of conversion, and to make religion a cloak for their atrocities; 
hence, but for these costly skins, each of which proclaimed in 
loudest strains the glories of Alaska, the Great Land might long 
have rested, undisturbed.” 

During at least the first twenty years after Bering’s discovery 
of Alaska the fur hunters treated the native inhabitants of the 
country with extreme cruelty and the history of this period is 
marked by one outrage after another. Investigations of reported 
mistreatment of the natives revealed such gross inhumanity as to 
cause the Siberian authorities to suspend free traffic in America 



HISTORICAL SKETCH OF ALASKA 


5 


and resort to the system of the formation, of privileged companies 
who derived their authority from imperial ukase. This system 
relieved the situation to a small extent only. However the treat¬ 
ment which had been accorded the natives resulted in numerous 
reprisals on their part, and much shedding of Russian and Indian 
blood marked Russia’s early contact with Alaska. 

In the list of early explorers, a number of names stand out 
prominently. Grigor Ivanovich Shelikof, after whom Shelikof 
Strait was named, explored the Aleutian Islands, Kodiak Island, 
the Alaska Peninsula, Cook Inlet and Prince William Sound dur¬ 
ing the years 1783-86. 

Alexander Baranof was the first of the explorers and trad¬ 
ers to visit southeastern Alaska. His voyage was made in 1799. 
Baranof Island bears his name. 

Otto von Kotzebue commanded an expedition which had as 
its object the discovery of the northeast passage to Europe. The 
expedition sailed from Petropavlovsk, Siberia, in the summer of 
1816 and proceeded through Bering Strait, thence eastward until 
the shallows made further progress impossible, altho open water 
yet appeared to the eastward. Kotzebue Sound, the body of water 
which was navigated, bears the name of the leader of this ex¬ 
pedition. 

In 1822, Etholen and Vassilaief made a detailed survey of 
Bristol Bay, westward to the mouth of the Kuskokwim River. 
Norton Sound also was explored along its eastern and northern 
shore, the deep indentation on the north shore being named 
Golovnin Bay. 

In 1833, a creole, (person with Russian father and Aleut 
mother) by the name of Andrei Glazanof, conducted an over¬ 
land expedition from Norton Sound to the Anvik River, thence 
down it to the Yukon River where some time was spent in ex¬ 
ploration. The expedition finally proceeded down the Yukon to 
its mouth. Glazanof subsequently explored much of the delta region 
of the Yukon which was at that time densely populated. He also 
crossed the portage to the Kuskokwim River. From this point 
he attempted to cross to Cook Inlet but shaped his course too 
far to the north and was forced to return to the Kuskokwim, 
thence to the Yukon, from which point he proceeded to the Rus¬ 
sian post at Mikhaielovsk, on Norton Sound. 

Early Settlements. 

The first permanent settlement of the Russians was estab¬ 
lished at Three Saints Bay, Kodiak Island, in 1783. This settle¬ 
ment was made by Grigor Ivanovich Shelikof, who is credited 
also with having opened the first school in Alaska at this place 
in 1785. A second permanent settlement was established in 1786 
in Cook Inlet at the mouth of the Kasilof River near the present 



6 


HISTORICAL SKETCH OF ALASKA 


site of Kenaii, by Kolomin. Both Shelikof and Kolomin were at 
tjre head of trading companies. 

The early settlements in Alaska, however, center around Alex¬ 
ander Baranof to a greater extent than perhaps any other individual. 
At first an independent trader, then agent for the Shelikof Company 
and later the originator, and for nineteen years manager, of the 
Russian American Company, which exercised practically absolute 
dominion over Alaska for 67 years, or from the time of its creation 
and charter in 1799, to 1866, the year preceding the transfer of 
Alaska to the United States. He introduced the first missionaries 
into Alaska and established a colony at Yakutat. It was under his 
direction that the first vessel built in north-western America was 
'ed Sitka, which was headquarters for Russian activities in Alaska 
for the greater part of the period of Russian occupation. He was re- 
'completed and launched on a successful voyage from Cook Inlet to | 
‘Kodiak Island. He visited Alexander Archipelago in 1799 and founjk 
placed as manager of the Russian American Company in 1818 under- 
circumstances which showed small appreciation for the services 
rendered. 

Bancroft, in his “History of Alaska,” pays this tribute to 
Baranof: “To him was due, more than to all others, the success 

of the Russian colonies in America; by him they had been founded 
and fostered, and but for him they would never have been estab¬ 
lished, or would have had, at best, a brief and troubled existence. 
Here, amid these wintry solitudes, he had raised towns and villages, 
built a fleet of sea-going ships, and laid a basis of trade with Ameri¬ 
can and Asiatic ports. All this he had accomplished while paying 
regular dividends to shareholders; and now in his old age he was 
cast adrift and called to render an account as an unfaithful 
steward.” 

Since the early history of Alaska centers about Sitka, the most 
important Russian settlement, it would be well for teachers to secure 
a copy of “The Story of Sitka,” by C. L. Andrews, P. O. Box 1888, 
Seattle, Washington, for use as a source of interesting bits of in¬ 
formation regarding the Russian occupancy of Alaska. 

English Exploration. 

Captain James Cook, a noted English navigator, who had con¬ 
ducted extensive explorations in South America, sailed up the west¬ 
ern coast of North America -in 1778, making his first discovery of 
the Alaska coast near the present site of Sitka. He then sailed north¬ 
westward, naming Cross Sound, Cape Fairweatlier and Controller 
Bay and landing at Kayak Island. From this point he sailed to 
Nuchek Bay—Port Etches on present day maps. He named Cape 
IJinchinbrook, also Montague Island, the largest island in Prince 
William Sound, the name applied to the whole inlet. He then round¬ 
ed and named Cape Elizabeth and entered the inlet which bears 



HISTORICAL SKETCH OF ALASKA 


7 


his name and which he explored with the idea that a northeast 
passage to Europe lay in this direction. Thence he cruised along 
the Alaska Peninsula and Aleutian Islands, touching at Unalaska 
and Dutch Harbor. He then entered Bering Sea and continued 
northward through Bristol Bay, Norton Sound, and Bering Strait. 
Enroute he entered the mouth of the Kuskokwim River, discovered 
and named Sledge Island, near Nome, and King Island, lying directly 
south of Bering Strait. On entering the Arctic Ocean he encountered 
heavy ice floes which forced him to keep a westerly course until he 
reached the Siberian coast at a promontory which he named Cape 
North. On the return voyage he stopped at the Hawaiian Islands, 
where he was killed in an encounter with the natives. Cook mapped 
and charted the coastal region of Alaska from 58' to 70° north and 
added much to the world’s knowledge of this unexplored section of 
the North American continent. Many of his charts and maps stood 
the test of much more extended and scientific later investigations. 

The explorations of Cook north and west of 60° were considered 
accurate but needed verification south of this point. There were 
also those who believed that a navigable passage might be discov¬ 
ered connecting the North Pacific with the Atlantic Ocean in lati¬ 
tudes south of Bering Strait. This double mission was assigned to 
George Vancouver, who sailed from England in 1791. Considerable 
exploration work was performed south of the Alaska coast and it 
was not until 1793 that the expedition reached Portland Canal. Van¬ 
couver navigated Behm Canal, Clarence Strait, and other waters 
to the mouth of the Stikeen River. Winter was now approaching 
and he repaired to the Hawaiian Islands to enter winter quarters. 
Early the following spring, he set sail northward to Cook Inlet 
which he navigated to its head. Thence he rounded Cape Elizabeth 
enroute to Prince William Sound, where he anchored in a harbor 
on the coast of Montague Island. Boats were sent out to survey the 
Sound and the coast as far eastward as Yakutat Bay. Anchor was 
then weighed and the expedition sailed eastward to Chichagof Island. 
From here a boat explored Lynn Canal and a part of Chatham 
Strait. Vancouver then proceeded southward through the archi¬ 
pelago to the Stikeen River, the point where observations had 
ceased the preceding fall. From this point he returned to England* 
having satisfied himself that no navigable passage connected the 
North Pacific with the Atlantic Ocean, and having made certain 
corrections in and additions to the work begun by Cook. 

These explorations by Cook and Vancouver formed the basis 
of England’s claim to northwestern North America. 

Spanish Explorations. 

Several years before the voyage of Captain Cook, Spain had 
made some minor explorations particularly in the Alexander Archi¬ 
pelago, with the intention of contesting Russia’s supremacy. An 



8 


HISTORICAL SKETCH OF ALASKA 


expedition, commanded by Juan Perez, sailed from San Bias, Mexico, 
in January, 1774. Perez touched the Alaska coast at the southern 
extremity of Prince of Wales Island only. 

A second expedition, of two vessels, was launched in 1775. 
The vessel commanded by Lieutenant Juan Francisco de Bodega y 
Cuadra was the only one which made discoveries within the present 
boundaries of Alaska, the other, under command of Lieutenant Bruno 
Hecata, confining its operations to the region to the South. Cuadra 
sighted land first at Mount Edgecumbe which he named Mount San 
Jacinto. The original nomenclature was not retained due to 
Spain’s neglect in not publishing the achievements of her explor¬ 
ers. Several points along the western shore of Alexander Archi¬ 
pelago were visited and solemnly taken possession of in the name 
of Spain. 

In 1799, another expedition under the command of Lieutenant 
Ignacio Areteaga, with Cuadra second in command, set out from 
San Bias to continue and complete the explorations of Cuadra The 
first stop took place at Bucareli Sound on the west coast of Prince 
of Wales Island, which had previously been visited by Cuadra. A 
complete survey of this harbor was made. Thence, the expedition 
sailed in a north-westerly direction, sighting Mt. St. Elias and later 
Kayak Island. The vessels anchored in Nuchek Bay, Hinchinbrook 
Island, from which point minor surveys were made and the country 
taken possession of in the name of Spain. (This was the third 
time this particular region had been located and claimed by rival 
nations within the course of a year. Cook explored and took pos¬ 
session of the place in 1778, and a party of Russians from Cook 
Inlet under Zaikof laid claim to it in June, 1799, basing their rights 
on that of discovery and exploration.) From this point the expedi¬ 
tion sailed to the southern end of Kenai Peninsula, formally took 
possession of the region, and then returned to Mexico. 

In 1788, two vessels in command of Estevan Martiney and 
Gonzales Haro, were launched on another northern expedition. 
Prince William Sound was again visited. Haro visited the Russian 
settlement on Kodiak Island. From this point he proceeded to Un- 
alaska and took possession of the island in the name of Spain. 

Alejandro Malaspina, an Italian navigator in the service of 
Spain, was dispatched to discover a north east passage to Europe, 
in 1791. He sighted land at Cape Edgecumbe and proceeded north 
to Yakutat Bay, which he entered. Malispina glacier was named 
by him. The expedition then sailed westward past Kayak Island 
and entered Prince William Sound, from which point he returned, 
via Cross Sound, to the starting point of the expedition, Nootka 
Sound, Vancouver Island. The previous year, 1790, Salvador Fidalgo 
had visited Prince William Sound and explored and named Port 
Fidalgo and Port Valdez. 



HISTORICAL SKETCH OF ALASKA 


9 


French Exploration. 

Tlie explorations conducted by the French government were 
much less extensive than those of the British and Spanish. An 
expedition under command of La Perouse set sail from Brest in 
August, 1785. On June 23, 1786, the coast of Alaska was sighted in 
the region of Mt. St. Elias. La Perouse had definite instructions 
to visit and explore the Aleutian Islands, however, he took a south¬ 
easterly course from St. Elias and entered Lituya Bay, which was 
explored with the idea that perhaps this stretch of water was the 
much sought passage to the Hudson Bay region. After an extended 
stay in this port, La Perouse sailed southward. He attempted to 
enter Dixon Entrance but was forced to abandon the project on 
account of unfavorable weather. As a result of his somewhat super¬ 
ficial investigations, he concluded that the entire coast from Cross 
Sound to the southern extremity of the Queen Charlotte Islands 
was one archipelago. 

United States Explorations 

Prior to the purchase of Alaska by the United States, little 
interest was taken in the territory and few American vessels navi¬ 
gated its waters. The American whaler, Superior, Captain Roys, 
commander, was the first commercial vessel to pass through Bering 
Strait. The favorable results of this trip influenced other American 
whalers to venture into the Arctic and a thriving industry sprung 
up during the period immediately preceding the Civil War. 

In 1856, Lieutenant William Gibson, U. S. N., commanding the 
schooner, “Fennimore Cooper,” made surveys along thp Aleutian 
Islands. He was connected with the Rodgers United States North¬ 
ern Pacific Exploring Expedition in the capacity of commander of 
the expedition. Some of the vessels of this fleet reached the 
Arctic Ocean. 

After the purchase of Alaska a number of American expedi¬ 
tions were launched. Soon after the purchase, the Coast and 
Geodetic Survey began the work of charting the coast line, which 
work is still in progress. Other government vessels such as those 
of the Revenue Marine Service, and Navy have contributed much 
to knowledge of the coastal region and waterways of Alaska. 

The Alaska Commercial Company, an American corporation do¬ 
ing business in Alaska, was formed in 1869. In 1870 this company 
leased the Pribilof Islands from the government for a period of 
twenty years. The company also established trading posts, prin¬ 
cipally on the Aleutian Islands, Kodiak Island, Kenai Peninsula and 
the Yukon River. The activities of this corporation resulted in in¬ 
creased knowledge of the American northland. 

In 1869, the first river steamboat ascended the Yukon. Dur¬ 
ing the same year Captain C. W. Raymond, U. S. A., lead an expedi¬ 
tion up the Yukon River for the purpose of determining its source 



10 


HISTORICAL SKETCH OF ALASKA 


and to learn something about the activities of the British in that 
region. In addition to gathering much valuable data pertaining to 
the native population and the resources of the country, Raymond 
surveyed the lower Yukon River. 

John Muir, the great naturalist and explorer, accompanied 
by Rev. S. Hall Young, explored parts of Southeastern Alaska in 
1879. They discovered Muir Glacier and explored Glacier Bay. 

Ivan Petrof, an agent of the Tenth Census, 1880, made a 
notable contribution to the knowledge of the geography and re¬ 
sources of Alaska. He spent two years in travel along the coast 
and on the lower Yukon and Kuskokwim Rivers. He made a map 
of Alaska which was fairly accurate and which set forth the gen¬ 
eral features of the country, including mountain ranges, rivers, etc. 
Petrof, who had long been a resident of the territory and who was 
familiar with both the Russian and native languages, was in an 
especially fortunate position to secure accurate information. 

In 1880 the first of the early prospectors followed the Indian 
trail over Chilkoot Pass and reached the Lewes and Yukon Rivers. 
Gold was reported on the Yukon as early as 1867, the time of the 
Western Union Telegraph survey. Gold was also discovered on 
Seward Peninsula, near Norton Sound, by Libby, a member of a 
party sent there to install a section of the telegraph line. 

In 1883, Lieutenant Frederick Schwatka, accompanied by a 
topographer, C. W. Hoffman, and four others, crossed the coastal 
mountains and constructed a raft on Lake Bennett, which they 
named. From this point they proceeded by a route known as 
Indian portage to the Lewes River, thence to the Yukon, which 
they navigated to its mouth. 

Perhaps the most remarkable of exploration journeys in all 
the history of Alaska was made by Lieutenant Henry T. Allen. In 
March, 1885, he landed at the mouth of the Copper River with 
four companions and traversed the stream for a distance of three 
hundred miles with poling boats and dog sleds. He then crossed 
over the divide to the head waters of the Tanana River and fol¬ 
lowed its course to its junction with the Yukon River. Throughout 
the entire journey the party subsisted on the country. On reaching 
the Yukon, Allen rested for a time and then, with one companion, 
crossed to the Koyukuk River and explored it from above the Arctic 
Circle to its junction with the Yukon. From the lower Yukon he 
crossed to Norton Sound, via the portage, and followed its southern 
border to the mouth of the Yukon, from which point he returned to 
the United States. He mapped the three rivers which he had 
traversed and made other valuable observations. 

It is not possible to recount in detail other explorations made 
by Americans within the limits of this brief sketch. Mention may 
be made of the exploration of Kotzebue Sound and the delta region 
of the Kobuk River and the discovery of the Noatak and Selawik 



HISTORICAL SKETCH OF ALASKA 


11 


Rivers by Lieutenant George E. Storey, of the revenue cutter “Cor¬ 
win”; the De Long expedition, which sailed from San Francisco in 
1870 to search for the North Pole; the journey of Ensign W. L. 
Howard up the valley of the Noatak River, across the divide to the 
valley of the Colville River, across another divide and down the 
Chipp River to the Arctic Coast, thence along the coast to Point 
Barrow; the information collected and distributed by numerous 
prospectors and individuals; and last and most important of all 
the work of the U. S. Geological Survey, which was begun in a 
systematic manner in 1898 and continues to the present time. Dr. 
Alfred H. Brooks was placed in charge of this work. The first 
year's explorations were conducted on the Kuskokwim, Susitna, 
Tanana, Matanuska and Copper Rivers. Since that time approxi¬ 
mately 200,000 square miles of territory have been investigated 
and mapped. Many of the coal measures of Alaska have been sur¬ 
veyed and a whole library of scientific data pertaining to geology 
and topography have been printed. So efficient has been the work 
of the U. S. Geological Survey and its chief, Dr. Alfred H. Brooks, 
that it has often been remarked that there are but two who know 
the truth about Alaska’s resources, namely Providence and Dr. 
Brooks. 

The Purchase of Alaska by The United States, y 

As early as 1854, during the Crimean War, the Emperor of 
Russia, fearing that the English would seize Russian America, of¬ 
fered to sell the territory to the United States. The offer was de¬ 
clined. During President Buchanan’s administration negotiations 
for purchase were opened but called off by Russia after an offer 
of $5,000,000 had been made. Credit for the final purchase is given 
to William H. Seward, Secretary of State under President Johnson, 
who was ably supported by Charles Sumner, General Banks, and 
others. 

The treaty of purchase was signed by Baron Stoeckl, for 
Russia, and Secretary Seward, for the United States, at 4 a. m. 
on March 30, 1867, and sent to the Senate for ratification on the 
same day. The measure was confirmed, after much debate and 
considerable opposition, on April 10th. The confirmation was se¬ 
cured largely as the result of a masterly address by Senator Charles 
Sumner in which he summarized all that was known regarding the 
territory. Articles were exchanged and the treaty proclaimed by 
President Johnson on June 20, 1867. 

Considerable difficulty was experienced in obtaining the neces¬ 
sary appropriation to consummate the purchase, $7,200,000, two 
cents per acre. The appropriation bill, however, was passed on 
July 14th. A controversy over which country was to meet the 
cable expenses incident to the purchase then arose. Russia refused 
to pay her share and the bill finally was settled by the United 



12 


HISTORICAL SKETCH OF ALASKA 


States after the cable company had reduced the amount. The 
foolishness of the quibble over purchase appropriations and ex¬ 
penses is apparent at the present time (1922) when the total ex¬ 
ports from Alaska since its purchase by the United States have 
reached a total of approximately a billion and one-quarter dollars. 

Some idea of the general ignorance of Alaska exhibited by 
the United States is gained from the terms applied to the terri¬ 
tory at the time when its purchase was being considered. “Wal- 
russia,” “American Siberia,” “Zero • Islands,” “Polaria,” and “Ice- 
bergia” are among the list. 

The formal transfer of Alaska to the United States took place 
at Sitka, October 18, 1867. Brigadier General Lovell H. Rousseau 
acted for the United States government and Prince Maksoutoff rep¬ 
resented Russia, although the actual ceremony of transfer was per¬ 
formed by Captain Alexei Pestchourof. The American flag used 
in this ceremony now reposes in a vault of the Department of 
State. The Russian flag was lowered by a Russian sailor and the 
Stars and Stripes hoisted by George Lovell Rousseau, a son of 
Brigadier General Lovell H. Rousseau. 

Following is the Treaty under the terms of which Alaska was 
ceded to the United States: 

Treaty of Cession 

The United States of America and His Majesty, the Emperor of 
all the Russias, being desirous of strengthening, if possible, the 
good understanding which exists between them, have, for that pur¬ 
pose, appointed as their Plenipotentiaries: the President of the 
United States, William H. Seward, Secretary of State; and His 
Majesty the Emperor of all the Russias, the Privy Counsellor Ed¬ 
ward de Stoeckl, his Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipoten¬ 
tiary to the United States. 

And the said Plenipotentiaries, having exchanged their full 
powers, which were found to be in due form, have agreed upon and 
signed the following articles: 

ARTICLE I—TERRITORY CEDED, BOUNDARIES. 

His Majesty the Emperor of all the Russias agrees to cede to 
the United States, by this convention, immediately upon the ex¬ 
change of the ratifications thereof, all the territory and dominion 
now possessed by his said Majesty on the continent of America 
and in the adjacent islands, the same being contained within the 
geographical limits herein set forth, to wit: The eastern limit is 
the line of demarcation between the Russian and the British pos¬ 
sessions in North America, as established by the convention between 
Russia and Great Britain, of February28-16, 1825, and described 
in Articles III. and IV. of said convention, in the following terms: 

“Commencing from the southermost point of the island called 
Prince of W T ales Island, which point lies in the parallel of 54 degrees 
40 minutes north latitude, and between the 131st and 133d degree 
of west longitude, (meridian of Greenwich), the said line shall ascend 
to the north along the channel called Portland Channel, as far as 
the point of the continent where it strikes the 56th degree of north 
latitude; from this last mentioned point, the line of demarcation 
shall follow the summit of the mountains situated parallel to the 



HISTORICAL SKETCH OF ALASKA 


13 


coast as far as the point of intersection of the 141st degree of the 
west longitude, (of the same meridian); and finally, from the said 
point of intersection, the said meridian line of the 141st degree, in 
its prolongation as far as the Frozen Ocean. 

“IV. With reference to the line of demarcation laid down in 
the preceding article, it is understood— 

1st. That the island called Price of Wales Island shall belong 
wholly to Russia,” (now, by this cession, to the United States.) 

“2nd. That whenever the summit of the mountains which 
extend in a direction parallel to the coast from the 56th degree of 
north latitude to the point of intersection of the 141st degree of 
west longitude shall prove to be at the distance of more than ten 
marine leagues from the ocean, the limit between the British pos¬ 
sessions and the line of coast, which is to belong to Russia as 
above mentioned (that is to say, the limit to the possessions ceded 
by this convention) shall be formed by a line parallel to the wind¬ 
ing of the coast, and which shall never exceed the distance of ten 
marine leagues therefrom.” 

The western limit within which the territories and dominion 
conveyed, are contained, passes through a point in Behring’s straits 
on the parallel of sixty-five degrees thirty minutes north latitude, 
at its intersection by the meridian which passes midway between 
the islands of Krusemstern, or Ignalook, and the Island of Ratma- 
noff, or Noonarbook, and proceeds due north, without limitation, into 
the same Frozen Ocean. The same western limit, beginning at the 
same initial point, proceeds thence in a course nearly southwest, 
through Behring’s straits and Behring’s sea, so as to pass midway 
between the northwest point of the island of St. Lawrence and the 
southeast point of Cape Choukotski, to the meridian of one hundred 
and seventy-two west longitude; thence, from the intersection of 
that meridian, in a southwesterly direction, so as to pass midway 
between the island of Attou and the Copper island of the Korman- 
dorski couplet or group, in the North Pacific ocean, to the meridian 
of one hundred and ninety-three degrees west longitude, so as to in¬ 
clude in the territory conveyed the whole of the Aleutian islands 
east of that meridian. 

ARTICLE II—PUBLIC PROPERTY CEDED. 

In the cession of territory and dominion made by the pre¬ 
ceding article, are included the right of property in all public • 
lots and squares, vacant lands, and all public buildings, fortifica¬ 
tions, barracks, and other edifices which are not private individual 
property. It is, however, understood and agreed, that the churches 
which have been built in the ceded territory by the Russian gov¬ 
ernment, shall remain the property of such members of the Greek 
Oriental Church resident in the territory, as may choose to wor¬ 
ship therein. Any Government archives, papers and documents rela¬ 
tive to the territory and dominion aforesaid, which may now be 
existing there, will be left in the possession of the agent of the 
United States; but an authenticated copy of such of them as may 
be required, will be, at all times, given by the United States to 
the Russian government, or to such Russian officers or subjects 
as they may apply for. 

ARTICLE III.—CITIZENSHIP OF INHABITANTS; UNCIVILIZED 

TRIBES. 

The inhabitants of the ceded territory, according to their 
choice, reserving their natural allegiance, may return to Russia with¬ 
in three years, but if they should prefer to remain in the ceded 



14 


HISTORICAL SKETCH OF ALASKA 


territory, they, with the exception of uncivilized native tribes, shall 
be admitted to the enjoyment of all the rights, advantages and 
immunities of citizens of the United States, and shall be main¬ 
tained and protected in the free enjoyment of their liberty, property 
and religion. The uncivilized tribes will be subject to such laws 
and regulations as the United States, may from time to time, adopt 
in regard to aboriginal tribes of that country. 

ARTICLE IV.—FORMAL DELIVERY. 

His Majesty, the Emperor of all the Russias, shall appoint, 
with convenient despatch, an agent or agents for the purpose of 
formally delivering to a similar agent or agents appointed on behalf 
of the United States, the territory, dominion, property, dependencies 
and appurtenances which are ceded as above, and for doing any 
other act which may be necessary in regard thereto. But the ces¬ 
sion, with the right of immediate possession, is nevertheless to be 
deemed complete and absolute on the .exchange of ratifications, with¬ 
out waiting for such formal delivery. 

ARTICLE V.—WITHDRAWAL OF TROOPS. 

Immediately after the exchange of the ratifications of this 
convention, any fortifications or military posts which may be in the 
ceded territory, shall be delivered to the agent of the United States, 
and any Russian troops which may be in the territory shall be with¬ 
drawn as soon as may be reasonably and conveniently practicable. 

ARTICLE VI—PAYMENT; EFFECT OF CESSION. 

In consideration of the cession aforesaid, the United States 
agree to pay at the Treasury in Washington, within ten months 
after the exchange of the ratifications of this convention, to the 
diplomatic representative or other agent of his Majesty the Emperor 
of all the Russias, duly authorized to receive the same, seven mil¬ 
lion two hundred thousand dollars in gold. The cession of terri¬ 
tory and dominion herein made is hereby declared to be free and 
unincumbered by any reservations, privileges, franchises, grants, 
or possessions, by any associated companies, whether corporate 
or incorporate, Russian or any other, or by any parties, except mere¬ 
ly private individual property-holders; and the cession hereby made, 
conveys all the rights, franchises, and privileges now belonging 
.to Russia in the said territory or dominion, and appurtenances 
thereto. 

ARTICLE VII.—RATIFICATION. 

When this convention shall have been duly ratified by the 
President of the United States, by and with the advice and consent 
of the Senate, on the one part, and on the other by His Majesty 
the Emperor of all the Russias, the ratifications shall be exchanged 
at Washington within three months from the date hereof, or sooner, 
if possible. 

In faith whereof, the respective plenipotentiaries have signed 
this convention, and thereto affixed the seals of their arms. 

Done at Washington, the thirtieth day of March in the year 
of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and sixty-seven. 

EDOUARD DE STOECKL, 
WILLIAM H. SEWARD. 

Alaska Under United States Control, 

The lowering of the Russian flag and the raising of the Stars 
and Stripes did not usher in an era of development for Alaska. 
On the contrary a period of stagnation ensued. Those who re- 



HISTORICAL SKETCH OF ALASKA 


15 


count the events of the first quarter century of United States 
control in Alaska are inclined to draw uncomplimentary compari¬ 
sons with the last quarter century of Russian rule. 

The period from 18 67 to 1884 was one of almost absolute 
governmental neglect. The United States army, which had taken 
over Alaska from Russia, remained in charge for the first decade. 
Military rule did not make for progress. During this period, Sitka 
remained the center of activities. Military posts were established 
at Kenai, Kodiak, Sitka, Tongas® and Wrangell, with detachments 
on the islands of St. Paul and St. George. All troops except those 
at Sitka were withdrawn in 1870. Alaska was made a customs 
collection district in 1868 and deputy collectors were stationed at 
Wrangell and Sitka. The withdrawal of the remaining soldiers 
in 1877 was regarded by the few white residents of Alaska as 
a boon, especially to the native population who had suffered in 
many ways because of their presence. 

From 1877 to 1879, there was no government of any de¬ 
scription in Alaska. During this time apparently lawlessness v/as 
no more rife than during the period of military rule. Alaska was 
officially “dry” territory. However, both imported liquor and the 
product of the hootchenoo stills, operated by the Indians and 
wliites alike, were in abundance, as was also the case during the 
military regime. The deputy collectors of customs exercised broad 
powers and served as adjudicators of disputes and to a degree as 
general police. However, they lacked authority to enforce law 
and order. 

Late in 1878, trouble arouse at Sitka over the murder of 
three white men by Indians. The Indians outnumbered the whites, 
including Russians, three to one. Notice of impending serious 
trouble was forwarded to Washington but elicited no response. 
An appeal was then made to the Britisih Admiral at Victoria, who 
despatched the “Osprey” under command of Captain A’Court to the 
scene of the trouble without delay. In April, 1879, the “Osprey” 
was relieved by the “Alaska,” an American vessel which was in 
turn replaced by the “Jamestown,” Captain Lester A. Beardslee, 
commander. This vessel was the United States government in 
Alaska until 1881, when the “Wachusett” replaced her. The 
“Wachusett” was relieved in 1882 by the “Adams,” Captain Mer- 
riman, commander. 

Underwood, in his “Alaska: An Empire in the Making,” de¬ 
scribes the work of the navy and of Captain Merriman, as follows: 

“Captain Merriman become a power among the Indians and 
he and his ship played an important part in the history of the 
country Peace and order reigned at Sitka, Indians and miners at 
Juneau were chastised when they deserved it and protected in 
whatever rights any of them had in the abandoned territory. 
Crooked traders and distillers of illicit liquor generally had a most 
unpleasant time of it during this period. Captain Merriman, 



16 


HISTORICAL SKETCH OF ALASKA 


besides exercising a general police duty about the territory, acted 
as referee, umpire, probate and appellate judge, arbiter of many 
vexed questions, and frequently the judgment of a modern Solomon 
had to be called into requisition in deciding issues in local tribal 
wars. Many times he was called upon to tear asunder those whom 
Indian ceremonies had made one, to protect young- native Beau 
Brummels, who scorned the proposal to marry their uncle’s widow; 
to save those doomed to death by torture for wit chi raft; to prevent 
killing of slaves at funerals and Potlatch festivals, and to ad¬ 
minister the estates of deeased chieftains. These duties demanded 
the exercise of tact and no inconsiderable portion of diplomacy. 
His departure from the wharf was witnesed by wailing groups of 
natives, who regarded him as the Great White Father of the 
country.” 

All who have studied the early history of Alaska are agreed 
apparently that the work of the navy was much superior to that 
of the army and that conditions in 1884 when civil government 
was granted to Alaska, were much better than in 1877 when the 
army was withdrawn. 

The bill providing for civil government in Alaska was intro¬ 
duced in the U. S. Senate in December 1883, was passed by that 
body in January 1884, and by the House of Representatives in 
May, 1884, when it was signed by President Arthur and became a 
law. The Act created the District of Alaska and provided for the 
appointment of officials. The officers of the first government, 
'who took office in September 1884, were: Governor, John H. Kin- 
kead; United States District Judge, Ward MacAllister, Jr.; United 
States District Attorney, E. W. Haskell; United States Marshal for 
the District of Alaska, M. C. Hillyer; Commissioner at Juneau, 
John G. Brady; Commissioner at Fort Wrangell, George P. Ihrie; 
Commissioner at Unalaska, Chester Seeber; Clerk of the District 
Court, Andrew T. Lewis. 

Since the pasasge of the first civil government act. for Alaska 
other important laws have been created. Brief reference is made 
to these in the article on civil government in Alaska which pre¬ 
cedes this article. 


The Mining Industry. 

The high spots in Alaska history are linked with one of her 
great industries, that of mining. Wrangell was the first of the 
Alaska towns to feel the impetus which comes from the presence 
of stampeders in search of gold. During the late 70’s and early 
80’s, it was the outfitting point for 30,000 miners who stampeded 
up the Stikeen River and into the Cassiar District, British Co¬ 
lumbia. Again in 1897, after the discovery of gold on the Klondike 
River, many stampeders outfitted at Wrangell, thinking that they 
could reach this El Dorado by way of the Stikeen River, Tele¬ 
graph Creek and Teslin Lake, thus avoiding the Chilkoot Pass and 
White Horse Rapids. 



HISTORICAL SKETCH OF ALASKA 


17 


The first placer gold mined in Alaska came from the Silver 
Bow Basin, Juneau, the oldest American settlement in Alaska, in 
1880. About the same time the Treadwell quartz mine was de¬ 
veloped in a small way and was later enlarged until it was second 
to no gold mine in the world at the time of 'the big cave-in and 
flooding of the major part of the workings in the spring of 1917. 
Castineau Channel lias been the center of considerable mining 
activity from the time of the first discovery of gold in Silver Bow 
Basin to the present time. The Alaska-Juneau mine, in 1922, 
produced one-sixth of all the gold mined in Alaska. The towns 
situated on the Channel have derived the major part of their 
prosperity from mining, during their entire history. 

The discovery of gold in the Klondike region, Yukon Terri¬ 
tory, in 1896 was responsible for a period of increased activity in 
Juneau during the succeeding years when the stampeders were en 
route. Wrangell’s growth at this time has already been men¬ 
tioned. Skagway came into being over night and in 1879-98 
was a city of some fifteen thousand inhabitants. Altho depleted 
in population at the present time, the city stands at the Gateway 
to the Yukon Territory and is of commercial importance for this 
reason. 

The placer mines of the Forty Mile River district were dis¬ 
covered in 1887; those of the Rampart district, in 1893; those of 
the Sunrise district, Cook Inlet, in 1894; and those of the upper 
Koyukuk River, in 1899. The first real stampede to Alaska ter¬ 
ritory, however, occurred with the discovery of placer gold on 
Anvil Creek near Nome in 1898. The stampeders arrived by the 
thousands during 1899 and 1900 when gold in paying quantities 
was discovered on the beach at Nome. Following the Nome 
stampede other placer deposits were opened on Seward peninsula, 
notably at Candle Creek, Council City, Solomon, and in the Koug- 
arok country to the Northward. After the days of the rush Nome’s 
population declined until 1905, when renewed activity occurred 
for a few years as the result of the discovery of gold in the old 
beach levels on the tundra back of the present beach. 

The discovery of gold near Fairbanks in 1902 created a new 
mecca for the disappointed stampeders who had visited the Klon¬ 
dike, Nome, and other districts, and thousands flocked to Fair¬ 
banks, which soon developed into a thriving .city. For several 
years following the first discovery of gold in this section, new 
finds were made on creeks in the district, and Fairbanks, there¬ 
fore, had a rather prolonged period of prosperity. The district 
still holds much promise both as a mining and agricultural section. 

The discovery of placer gold near Hot Springs on the Tanana 
River, in 1906, resulted in the establishment of a permanent 
settlement there. Iditarod is among the last of the large placer 
camps. The district was discovered in 1909 and is still producing 



18 


HISTORICAL SKETCH OF ALASKA 


approximately one-half million dollars in gold annually. Gold 
was dicovered on the creek back of Ruby in 1912, resulting in the 
establishment of a permanent settlement at that point. The Tolo- 
vana strike in 1914 resulted in a large influx of gold seekers 
to that section. The Kantishna, Hyder and Willow Creek dis¬ 
tricts now loom large on the gold mining horizon. 

In addition to the settlements mentioned as being founded 
largely as a result of gold mining activities, other minerals have 
played a part in the development of Alaska’s history and com¬ 
merce. Copper was responsible for the construction of the Copper 
River and Northwestern Railroad, which connects the copper 
mines at Kennecott and vicinity with the coast. Cordova, the 
coast terminal, sprang into existence at the time that construc¬ 
tion on his railroad was begun, in 1907. Other settlements in the 
Copper River section owe their existence to the production of 
copper. 

Coal, situated in the Matanuska River valley, was responsible 
for the construction of the Alaska Central Railroad with its coast 
terminal at Seward, thus resulting in the establihsment of this 
thriving community. Coal in the Matanuska and Nenana River 
Valleys, likewise, was responsible largely for the construction of 
the Government Railroad and the existence of Anchorage, Nenana, 
and a number of other smaller communities along the line of the 
railroad. Coal and oil in the Bering River district created a per¬ 
manent settlement at Katalla. 

The report of the Territorial Mine Inspector for the year 
1921, places the total mineral production in Alaska since 1880 at 
$478,600,789.00, more than sixty times the purchase price. The 
value by substances is as follows: 


Gold .$327,785,553 

Copper . 135,443,202 

Silver . 8,084,892 

Coal . 2,276,128 

Tin . 935,264 

Lead . 708,258 

Antimony . 237,500 

Petroleum, marble, gypsum, quick¬ 
silver, platinum, etc. 3,129,992 


Total ...$478,600,789 


Alaska’s undeveloped mineral resources are still enormous. 
Known tin deposits, principally on Seward Peninsula, have no 
equal on the North American continent. The coal bearing lands 
of Alaska cover 12,000 square miles and contain billions of tons 
of coal. Some coal veins in the Nenana River region are 45 feet 
in thickness. At one point on this river there are four veins one 













HISTORICAL SKETCH OF ALASKA 


19 


above the other separated by narrow layers of shale and sandstone 
and totaling, in all, 113 feet in coal. 

Oil seepages are found in various parts of Alaska, notably on 
Bering River, Yakatga Beach, Cold Bay, Iliamna, in the Anchorage 
and Nenana districts, and on the Arctic coast. The only pro¬ 
ducing wells are owned by the Chilkat Oil Company, Katalla. 
The production from ten wells drilled on a single patented claim 
is from 1000 to 1200 barrels monthly. 

The Fishing and Fur-Seal Industry. 

Perhaps less romantic than mining, but equally as profitable 
in a commercial way, and the source of a much greater revenue to 
the Territory, are the fisheries and fur seal industries of Alaska. 
Four kinds of fish are chiefly of commercial value—salmon, cod, 
halibut, and herring. The earliest figures on production show a 
catch of $202,138 value in cod, and of $16,000 in salmon in 1868. 
The banner year in the fishing industry in Alaska was that of 
1918 when the combined value of all fisheries products totalled 
$59,144,859 exclusive of the fur-seal industry. This sum is more 
than eight times the purchase price of Alaska. 

The total valuation of fisheries and fur seal products from 
186 8 to and including the year 1921 was approximately $540,- 
000,000, more than seventy times the purchase price of Alaska. Of 
this amount $480,000,000 was derived from fisheries and $60,- 
000,000 from the fur-seal industry. 

The fishing industry is the principal source of revenue of 
many of the coast cities and smaller communities. Ketchikan 
is easily the most important commercial fishing center in Alaska. 
Petersburg, Wrangell, Sitka, Kodiak, Seldovia, Kenai and num¬ 
erous smaller communities owe their existence as permanent settle¬ 
ments and their present prosperity more largely to the fishing 
industry than to any other activity. 

Salmon are found along the entire Alaska coast from Portland 
Canal to Point Barrow. The principal canneries are situated in 
southeastern Alaska, Prince William Sound, Cook Inlet and Bristol 
Bay. The bulk of salmon are canned, although there are a few 
salmon salteries, pickling plants and mild curing stations in 
operation. Salmon, also, are one of the principal varieties of fresh 
fish, the King Salmon being the best adapted to the fresh fish 
market because of the fact that it may be found in partially 
landlocked waters during the entire year and caught by the pro¬ 
cess of trolling. Dried or smoked salmon are especially valuable 
as dog feed and are used also in this form by the Indian popula¬ 
tion as food. 

Cod are found chiefly along the southern slope of the Alaska 
Peninsula and at a number of points in Bering Sea. This fish is 
canned, dry salted and pickled. It is also marketed in the fresh 




20 


HISTORICAL SKETCH OF ALASKA 


state, either frozen or iced. Cod fish tongues are a great deli¬ 
cacy. A total of 18,800 pounds was marketed in 1918. 

Halibut is the principal variety of fresh fish and is usually 
marketed either iced or frozen. A small per cent is salted or 
smoked. Halibut are found chiefly in the channels of the Alexan¬ 
der Archipelago 1 and ocean waters adjacent thereto, and in Cook 
Inlet and Bering Sea. 

Herring are found chiefly in southeastern Alaska, Prince 
William Sound, Cook Inlet and Bering Sea. This fish is canned, 
dry salted, pickled and offered fresh in the market. Frozen her¬ 
ring also are sold in large quantities as bait. The manufacture 
of fertilizer and oil from herring and the waste from salmon and 
other fi^h is an industry which is conducted on a small scale. The 
principal fertilizer plant is located at Kilisnoo in southeastern 
Alaska. 

From 15,000 to 25,000 persons are employed annually in the 
fishing industry in Alaska during the summer and early fall 
months. A considerable part of this labor is imported from Pacific 
coast ports by the large cannery interests. During the year of 
greatest production, 1918, 31,213 persons were employed in the 
Alaska fisheries. 

The fur-seal industry is confined chiefly to the Pribilof 
Islands, in the Bering Sea, alt ho deep sea sealing is done by 
Alaska Indians during the period When seals are migrating. The 
seal herd passes along the coast of southeastern Alaska usually in 
the early spring of each year and it is at this point that sealing 
by Indians is done. The regulations of the Department of Com¬ 
merce, which has exclusive jurisdiction over fur-sealing, provide 
that Indians shall not kill fur-seal within the three mile limit and 
that sealers must not use power boats or fire arms. 

The white population of Alaska is prohibited from killing 
fur-seal at any time. Fur-seal are officially killed annually by 
representatives of the Bureau of Fisheries, Department .of Com¬ 
merce, at the rookeries on the Pribilof Islands. Extreme care is 
erercised in the killing that breeding stock may continue to be 
plentiful. The year, 1920, was the banner year in production, 
the sale of skins amounting to $1,707,071. There were, at the 
time of the 1921 census, 581,453 seals in the Pribilof Islands seal 
herds. 

National Forests of Alaska. 

There are two national forests in Alaska—the Tongass, in 
southeastern Alaska and the Chugach, in the Prince William Sound 
and Kenai Peninsula regions and on Afognak Island. These forests 
cover 20,573,444 acres or about 5 % per cent of the total area of Al¬ 
aska. Of this amount 500,000 acres have been cruised and mapped. 

The Tongass forest is the larger and of more commercial 
importance. It is estimated to contain about 74,000,000,000 board 




HISTORICAL SKETCH OF ALASKA 


21 


feet of timber ripe for marketing. Stands of 100,000 board feet 
per acre are not infrequent. This forest is ideally situated for 
marketing. It has 9,000 miles of shore line. Seventy-five per cent 
of the usable timber is within two miles of tide water. The tim¬ 
ber runs 65 per cent western hemlock; 23 per cent Sitka spruce; 
and 12 per cent western red cedar, yellow cedar, cottonwood and 
white fir. 

Alaska forests contain much timber suitable for paper manu¬ 
facture. About 6,000,000 tons of pulpwood are required annually 
to supply the United States with paper. Experts estimate that the 
Tongass National Forest could easily supply one-third of. this 
amount indefinitely. 

The Chugach National Forest is smaller than the Tongass. 
Its trees are not as large and the stand of timber only about one- 
half as heavy. It is estimated to contain about 7,000,000,000 
board feet of lumber—one tenth that of the Tongass. Western 
hemlock predominates, with spruce, poplar and birch making up 
the balance. It also contains much timber suitable for paper 
manufacture. 

About 500,000,000 board feet of timber have been cut and 
sold from the national forests of Alaska during the past ten years 
which covers the major part of the period of activity along this 
line. The principal part of this lumber has been taken from the 
Tongass National Forest. Practically the entire output of lumber 
has been used in local industries, altho an export trade lias de¬ 
veloped recently. 

There is at present one paper pulp mill in Alaska. This is 
located at Speel River in southeastern Alaska. It has a capacity 
of 24 tons daily. 

Provision is made for filing on homesteads within the bound¬ 
aries of Alaska forests. On December 31, 1922, a total of 305 
claims had been filed with the Alaska Forest Service, embracing 
35,670 acres. One hundred and seventy-one of these claims were 
filed in the Tongass and 134 in the Chugach forest. 

Twenty-five water power sites have been surveyed and mapped 
within the boundaries of the Tongass Forest. Of this number 
twelve have capacities ranging between 10,000 and 30,000 horse 
power. There are at least three major power sites within the 
Chugach Forest. Up to the present time these have not been sur¬ 
veyed or mapped. 

Agriculture. 

Agriculture, as yet a minor Alaska industry, is destined to 
become one of great importance There are immense tracts of land 
in the Matanuska and Tanana River valleys which are of demon¬ 
strated agricultural value. In addition there are numerous smaller 
tracts along the coastal region and other points in the interior 



22 


HISTORICAL SKETCH OF ALASKA 


which are suitable for agricultural purposes. Estimates by the 
Department of Agriculture place the area of agricultural and 
grazing land in Alaska at 64,000,000 acres, exclusive of the great 
tracts which are suitable for reindeer. There are more agricul¬ 
tural lands in Alaska than in the entire Scandinavian Peninsula, 
which supports a population of more than ten million persons 
engaged in agricultural pursuits. 

Approximately 2,500 acres of farm land is under cultivation 
in the Tanana River valley. There is a flour mill at Fairbanks 
which is the property of the Tanana Valley Agricultural Associa¬ 
tion. This mill converted 35 tons of native wheat into graham, 
whole wheat and white flour, during the winter of 1921-22. 

In addition to the small grains, the principal products of 
Alaska farms are small fruits, such as strawberries, raspberries, 
currants and gooseberries; potatoes; rutabagas; turnips; carrots; 
celery; and numerous other garden vegetables. 

Stock raising as an industry has not developed to any great 
extent. However, cattle and hogs are bred in both the interior 
and coastal regions. 

There are five agricultural experiment stations in Alaska 
which are maintained by the Department of Agriculture, United 
States Government. They are situated at Sitka, Kodiak, Mata- 
nuska, Fairbanks and Rampart. Each station performs work par¬ 
ticularly suited to the district in which it is located. The various 
enterprises either accomplished or absorbing the efforts of these 
stations at the present time, are the development by crossbreed¬ 
ing, of varieties of strawbeerries, raspberries, currants, goose¬ 
berries, apples and other fruits which will thrive in Alaska; the 
crossbreeding of potatoes, grains, alfalfa, vetch and garden veget¬ 
ables; the crossbreeding of cattle, sheep and other livestock; and 
the analysis and testing of soil. 

Other Industries. 

Limited space precludes other than the mere mention'’ of a 
number of other Alaska industries. The value of furs exported, 
exclusive of the fur-seal, has averaged approximately $1,500,000 
per year for the past five years. The principal fur-bearing animals 
are ermine, mink, marten, muskrat, otter, beaver, lynx, bear, wolf, 
and wolverine. 

The reindeer of Alaska now number approximately 260,000. 
Of this number, two thirds belong to Alaska Indians and the 
balance to Lapps and whites. Reindeer are the source of a large 
portion of the meat supply of several thousand Indians in the 
Seward Peninsula, Kotzebue Sound and Kuskokwim River districts. 
The white population of these districts also use the meat as a 
staple food. Lomen and Company, Nome, are the principal export- 



HISTORICAL SKETCH Of" ALASKA 


23 


ers of reindeer meat to the United States. In 19 20 this firm 
shipped 256,449 pounds, valued at $61,865. 

Fur-farming is developing into a thriving industry, par¬ 
ticularly in southeastern Alaska, Prince William Sound, Cook 
Inlet, and on the islands bordering the Alaska Peninsula. Blue 
fox, silver fox, mink and marten are the fur-bearing animals 
which are propagated. Blue fox farming leads. These animals 
usually are given the range of an island. Silver fox, mink and 
marten are propagated in corrals. Attempts to propagate marten 
have met with indifferent success. The other fur-bearing animals 
are propagated successfully. 

On January 1, 1923, a total of 137 islands within the limits 
of the two national forests were under lease to fur-farmers. Of 
this number, 108 are in the Tongass and 29 in the Chugach Forest. 
In addition, 9 islands under the supervision of the Bureau of Bio¬ 
logical Survey were under lease. This Bureau also has issued 38 
permits, having all the effect of a lease, in the Aleutian Islands 
Reservation. This makes a total of 184 permits and leases issued 
to fur-farmers in Alaska. 

There are now two active whaing stations in Alaska, one at 
Port Armstrong in Southeastern Alaska and the other at Akutan 
in the Aleutian Islands. Whaling vesesls operate chiefly in the 
North Pacific Ocean. During the year 1919 a total of 580 whales 
were taken. The value of whaling products during this year 
was $1,790,867. 



24 


CIVIL GOVERNMENT OF ALASKA 


CIVIL GOVERNMENT OF ALASKA. 


From June 20, 1867, the date on which formal exchange of 
ratification of the treaty of purchase was made by Russia and the 
United States, until May 17, 1884, Alaska was an unorganized 
territory. There was no civil or criminal code, and no system of 
courts. On May 17, 1884, Congress enacted a law creating the 
“District of Alaska,” with the seat of government at Sitka, and 
providing a system of courts and a civil and criminal code, and 
making the laws of the State of Oregon applicable to Alaska. 

The “District of Alaska” was terminated and the “Territory 
of Alaska” created in 1912 by the passage of what is known as 
the “Organic Act.” Prior to this time another very important 
law was passed by Congress providing for the incorporation of 
towns. This law was approved on June 6, 1900. Towns which 
have been incorporated under its provisions in the order of date 
of incorporation are as follows: 

Juneau, Skagway, Nome, Valdez, Eagle, Douglas, Fairbanks, 
Wrangell, Ketchikan, Cordova, Petersburg, Haines, Iditarod, Tan- 
ana, Seward, Anchorage, Sitka and Nenana. 

In 1906 an act was passed giving Alaska representation in 
Congress and providing for the election of a Delegate to Congress. 

The “Organic Act” under which Alaska became a Territory is 
to Alaska what a State Constitution is to a State. For that reason 
it should be studied by upper grade and high school students. 
The Organic Act was approved, August 24, 1912. Two' additions 
w'hich are in the nature of amendments, have been made since that 
date. Following is the Act with amendments: 

Organic Act. 

AN ACT to create a legislative assembly in the Territory of Alaska, 
to confer legislative power thereon, and for other purposes. 

Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress Assembled: 

That the territory ceded to the United States by Russia by 
the Treaty of March thirtieth, eighteen hundred and sixty-seven, 
and known as Alaska, shall be and constitute the Territory of 
Alaska under the laws of the United States, the government of 
which shall be organized and administered as provided by said 
laws. 






CIVIL GOVERNMENT OF ALASKA 


25 


Sec. 2. That the capital of the Territory shall be at the 
city of Juneau, Alaska, and the seat of government shall be main¬ 
tained there. 

Sec. 3. That the Constitution of the United States, and all the 
laws thereof which are not locally inapplicable, shall have the 
same force and effect within the said Territory as elsewhere in 
the United States; that all the laws of the United States heretofore 
passed establishing the executive and judicial departments in 
Alaska shall continue in full force and effect until amended or 
repealed by Act of Congress; that except as herein provided all 
laws now in force in Alaska shall continue in full force and 
effect until altered, amended, or repealed by Congress or by the 
legislature: Provided, That the authority herein granted to the 
legislature to alter, amend, modify, and repeal laws in force in 
Alaska shall not extend to the customs, internal-revenue, postal, 
or other general laws of the United States or to the game, fish, 
and fur-seal laws and laws relating to fur-bearing animals of the 
United States applicable to Alaska, or to the laws of the United 
States providing for taxes on business and trade, or to the Act 
entitled “An Act to provide for the construction and maintenance 
of roads, the establishment and maintenance of schools, and the 
care and support of insane personsi in the District of Alaska, and 
for other purposes,” approved January twenty-seventh, nineteen 
hundred and five, and the several Acts amendatory thereof: Pro¬ 
vided further, That this provision shall not operate to prevent the 
legislature from imposing other and additional taxes or licenses. 
And the legislature shall pass no law depriving the judges and 
officers of the district court of Alaska of any authority, jurisdic¬ 
tion, or function exercised by like judges or officers of district 
courts of the United States. 

Sec. 4. That the legislative power and authority of said 
Territory shall be vested in a legislature, which shall consist of a 
senate and a house of representatives. The senate shall consist 
of eight members, two from each of the four judicial divisions 
into which Alaska is now divided by Act of Congress, each of 
whom shall have at the time of his election the qualifications of 
an elector in Alaska, and Shall have been a resident and an 
inhabitant in the division from which he is elected for at least 
two years prior to the date of his election. The term of office of 
each member of the senate shall be four years: Provided, That 
immediately after they shall be assembled in consequence of the 
first election they shall, by lot or drawing, be divided in each 
division into two classes; the seats of the members of the first 
class shall be vacated at the end of two years and the seats of 
the members of the second class shall be vacated at the end of 
four years, so that one member of the senate shall, after the 
first election, be elected biennially at the regular election from 
each division. The house of representatives shall consist of six¬ 
teen members, four from each of the four judicial divisions into 
which Alaska is now divided by Act of Congress. The terms of 
office of each representative shall be for two years and each rep¬ 
resentative shall possess the same qualifications as are prescribed 
for members of the senate and the persons receiving the highest 
number of legal votes in each judicial division cast in said elec¬ 
tion for senator or representative shall be deemed and declared 
elected to such office: Provided, that in the event of a tie vote 
the candidates thus affected shall settle the question by lot. In 
case of a vacancy in either branch of the legislature the governor 
shall order an election to fill such vacancy, giving due and proper 



26 


CIVIL GOVERNMENT OF ALASKA 


notice thereof. That each member of the legislature shall be paid 
by the United States the sum of fifteen dollars per day for each 
day’s attendance while the legislature is in session, and mileage, 
in addition, at the rate of fifteen cents per mile for each mile 
from his home to the capital and return by the nearest traveled 
route. 

Sec. 5. That the first election of members of the Legislature 
of Alaska shall be held on Tuesday next after the first Monday, 
nineteen hundred and twelve, and all subsequent elections for 
the election of such members shall be held on the Tuesday next 
after the first Monday in November biennially thereafter; that the 
qualifications of electors, the regulations governing the creation 
of voting precincts, the appointment and qualifications of election 
officers, the supervision of elections, the giving of notices thereof, 
the forms of ballots, the register of votes, the challenging of 
voters, and the returns and the canvass of the returns of the 
result of all such elections for members of the legislature shall 
be the same as those prescribed in the Act of Congress en¬ 
titled “An Act providing for the election of a Delegate to the 
House of Representatives from the Territory of Alaska,” approved 
May seventh, nineteen hundred and six, and all the provisions of 
said Act which are applicable are extended to said elections for 
members of the legislature, and shall govern the same, and the 
canvassing board created by said Act shall canvass the returns 
of such elections and issue certificates of election to each mem¬ 
ber elected to the said legislature; and all the penal provisions 
contained in section fifteen of the said Act shall apply to elections 
for members of the legislature as fully as they now apply to 
elections for Delegate from Alaska to the House of Representatives. 

Sec. 6. That the Legislature of Alaska shall convene at the 
capital at the city of Juneau, Alaska, on the first Monday in March 
in the year nineteen hundred and thirteen, and on the first Mon¬ 
day in .March every two years thereafter; but the said legislature 
shall not continue in session longer than sixty days in any two 
years unless again convened in extraordinary session by a pro¬ 
clamation of the governor, which shall set forth the object thereof 
and give at least thirty days’ written notice to each member of 
said legislature, and in such case shall not continue in session 
longer than fifteen days. The governor of Alaska is hereby 
authorized to convene the legislature in extraordinary session for a 
period not exceeding fifteen days when requested to* do so by the 
President of the United States, or when any public danger or 
necessity may require it. 

Sec. 7. That when the legislature shall convene under the 
law, the senate and house of representatives shall each organize 
by the election of one of their number as presiding officer, who 
shall be designated in the case of the senate as “president of the 
senate” and in the case of the house of representatives as “speak¬ 
er of the house of representatives,” and by the election by each 
body of the subordinate officers provided for in section eighteen 
hundred and sixty-one of the United States Revised Statutes of 
eighteen hundred and seventy-eight, and each of said subordinate 
officers shall receive the compensation provided in that section; 
Provided, That no person shall be employed for whom salary, 
wages, or compensation is not provided in the appropriation made 
by Congress. 

Sec. 8. That the enacting clause of all laws passed by the 
legislature shall be “Be it enacted by the Legislature of the Ter- 



CIVIL GOVERNMENT OF ALASKA 


27 


ritory of Alaska.” No law shall embrace more than one subject, 
which shall be expressed in its title. 

Sec. 9. The legislative power of the Territory shall extend 
to all rightful subjects of legislation not inconsistent with the 
Constitution and laws of the United States, but no law shall be 
passed interfering with the primary disposal of the soil; no tax 
shall be imposed upon the property of the United States; nor shall 
the lands or other property of nonresidents be taxed higher than 
the lands or property of residents; nor shall the legislature grant 
to any corporation, association, or individual any special or ex¬ 
clusive privilege, immunity, or franchise without the affirmative 
approval of Congress; nor shall the legislature pass local or special 
laws in any of the cases enumerated in the Act of July thirtieth, 
eighteen hundred and eighty-six; nor shall it grant private char¬ 
ters or special privileges, but it may, by general act, permit per¬ 
sons to associate themselves together as bodies corporate for 
manufacturing, mining, agricultural, and other industrial pur¬ 
suits, and for the conduct of business of insurance, savings banks, 
banks of discount and deposit (but not of issue), loans, trust, 
and guaranty associations, for the establishment and conduct of 
cemeteries, and for the construction and operation of railroads, 
wagon roads, vessels, and irrigation ditches, and the coloniza¬ 
tion and improvement of lands in connection therewith, or for 
collegas, seminaries, churches, libraries, or any other benevolent, 
charitable, or scientific association, but the authority embraced in 
this section shall only permit the organization of corporations or 
associations whose chief business shall be in the Territory of 
Alaska; no divorce be granted by the legislature, nor shall any 
divorce be granted by the courts of the Territory, unless the 
applicant therefor shall have resided in the Territory for two years 
next preceding the application, which residence and all causes 
for divorce shall be determined by the court upon evidence ad¬ 
duced in open court; nor shall any lottery or the sale of lottery 
tickets be allowed; nor shall the legislature or any municipality 
interfere with or attempt in anywise to limit the Acts of Con¬ 
gress to prevent and punish gambling, and all gambling imple¬ 
ments shall be seized by the United States marshal or any of its 
deputies, or any constable or police officer, and destroyed; nor 
shall spirituous or intoxicating liquors be manufactured or sold, 
except under regulations and restrictions as Congress shall pro¬ 
vide; nor shall any public money be appropriated by the Territory 
or any municipal corporation therein for the support or benefit of 
any sectarian, denominational, or private school, or any school 
not under the exclusive control of the Government; nor shall 
the Government of the Territory of Alaska or any political or 
municipal corporation or subdivision of the Territory make any 
subscription to the capital stock of any incorporated company, or 
in any manner lend its credit for the use thereof; nor shall the 
Territory, or any municipal corporation therein, have power or 
authority to create or assume any bonded indebtedness whatever; 
nor to borrow money in the name of the Territory or of any 
municipal division thereof; nor to pledge the faith of the people 
of the same for any loan whatever, either directly or indirectly; 
nor to create, nor to assume, any indebtedness, except for the 
actual running expenses thereof; and no such indebtedness for 
actual running expenses shall be created or assumed in excess of 
the actual income of the Territory or municipality for that year, 
including as a part of such income appropriations then made by 
Congress, and taxes levied and payable and applicable to the 



28 


CIVIL GOVERNMENT OF ALASKA 


payment of such indebtedness and cash and other money credits 
on hand and applicable and not already pledged for prior indebt¬ 
edness: Provided, That all authorized indebtedness shall be paid 
in the order of its creation; all taxes shall be uniform upon the 
same class of subjects and shall be levied and collected under gen¬ 
eral laws, and the assessments shall be according to the actual 
value thereof. No tax shall be levied for Territorial purposes in 
excess of one per centum of the assesseed valuation of the property 
therein in any one year; nor shall any incorporated town or muni¬ 
cipality levy any tax, for any purpose, in excess of two per centum 
of the assessed valuation of property within the town in any one 
year: Provided, That the Congress reserves the exclusive power for 
five years from the date of the approval of this Act to> fix and 
impose any tax or taxes upon railways or railway property in 
Alaska, and no acts or laws passed by the Legislature of Alaska 
providing for a county form of government therein shall have any 
force or effect until it shall be submitted to and approved by the 
affirmative action of Congress; and all laws passed, or attempted 
to be passed, by such legislature in said Territory inconsistent 
with the provisions of this section shall be null and void: Pro¬ 
vided further, That nothing herein coiftained shall be held to 
abridge the right of the legislature to modify the qualifications 
of electors by extending the elective franchise to women. 

Sec. 10. That the senate and house of representatives shall 
each choose its own officers, determine the rules of its own 

proceedings not ihconsistent with this Act, and keep a journal 
of its proceedings; that the ayes and noes of the members of 
either house on any question shall, at the request of one-fifth of 
the members present, be entered upon the journal; that a ma¬ 
jority of the members, to which each house is entitled shall con¬ 

stitute a quorum of such house for the conduct of business, of 
which quorum a majority vote shall suffice; that a smaller 
number than a quorum may adjourn from day to day and compel 
the attendance of absent members, in such manner and under 
such penalties as each house may provide; that for the purpose 
of ascertaining whether there is a quorum present the presiding 
officer shall count and report the actual number of members 

present. 

Sec. 11. That no member of the legislature shall hold or be 
appointed to any office which has been created, or the salary or 
emoluments of which have been increased, while he was a mem¬ 
ber, during the term for which he was elected* and for one year 
after the expiration of such term; and no person holding a com¬ 
mission or appointment under the United States shall be a mem¬ 
ber of the legislature or shall hold any office under the govern¬ 
ment of said Territory. 

Sec. 12. That no member of the legislature shall be held 
to answer before any other tribunal for any words uttered in the 
exercise of his legislative functions. That the members of the 
legislature shall, in all cases except treason, felony, or breach of 
the peace, be privileged from arrest during their attendance upon 
the sessions of the respective houses, and in going to and re¬ 
turning from the same: Provided, That such privilege as to going 
and returning shall not cover a period of more than ten days 
each way, except in the second division, when it shall extend to 
twenty days each way, and the fourth division to fifteen days 
each way. 

Sec. 13. That a bill in order to become a law shall have 
three separate readings in each house, the final passage of which 



CIVIL GOVERNMENT OF ALASKA 


29 


in each house shall be by a majority vote of all the members to 
which such house is entitled, taken by ayes and noes, and en¬ 
tered upon its* journal. That every bill, when passed by the 
house in which it originated or in which amendments thereto 
shall have originated, shall immediately be enrolled and certified 
by the presiding officer and the clerk and sent to the other house 
for consideration. 

Sec. 14. That, except as herein provided, all bills passed 
by the legislature shall, in order to be valid, be signed by the 
governor. That every bill which shall have passed the legislature 
shall be certified by the presiding officers and clerks of both 
houses, and shall thereupon be presented to the governor. If he 
approves it, he shall sign it and it shall become a law at the 
expiration of ninety days thereafter, unless sooner given effect 
by a two-thirds vote of said legislature. If the governor does not 
approve such bill, he may return it, with his objections to the 
legislature. He may veto any specific item or items in any bill 
which appropriates money for special purposes, but shall veto 
other bills*, if at all, only as ia whole. That upon the receipt of 
a veto message from the governor each house of the legislature 
shall enter the same at large upon its journal and proceed to 
reconsider such bill, or part of a bill, and again vote upon it 
by ayes and noes, which shall be entered upon its* journal. If, 
after such reconsideration, such bill or part of a bill shall be 
approved by a two-thirds vote of all the members to which each 
house is entitled, it shall thereby become a law. That if the 
governor neither signs nor vetoes a bill within three days (Sun¬ 
day excepted) after it is delivered to him, it shall become a law 
without his signature, unless the legislature adjourns sine die 
prior to the expiration of such three days. If any bill shall not 
be returned by the governor within three days (Sundays ex¬ 
cepted) after it shall have been presented to him, the same shall 
be a law in like manner as if he had signed it, unless the leg¬ 
islature, by its adjournment, prevents the return of the bill, in 
which case it shall not be a law. 

Sec. 15. That there shall be annually appropriated by Con¬ 
gress a sum sufficient to pay the salaries of members and author¬ 
ized employees of the Legislature of Alaska, the printing of 
the laws, and other incidental expenses thereof; the said 
sums shall be disbursed by the governor' of Alaska, under sole in¬ 
structions from the Secretary of the Treasury, and he shall ac¬ 
count quarterly to the Secretary for the manner in which the 
said funds shall have been expended; and no expenditure, to 
be paid out of money appropriated by Congress, shall be made by 
the governor or by the legislature for objects not authorized by 
the Acts of Congress making the appropriations, nor beyond the 
sums thus appropriated for such objects. 

Sec. 16. That the governor of Alaska shall, within ninety 
days after the close of each session of the Legislature of the Ter¬ 
ritory of Alaska, transmit a correct copy of all the laws* and reso¬ 
lutions passed by the said legislature certified to by the secretary 
of the Territory, with the seal of the Territory attached; one 
copv to the President of the United States, and one to the Sec¬ 
retary of State of the United States; and the legislature shall 
make provisions for printing the session laws and resolutions 
within ninety days after the close of each session and for their 
distribution to public officials and sale to the people of the 
Territory. 



30 


CIVIL GOVERNMENT OF ALASKA 


Sec. 17. That after the year nineteen hundred and twelve 
the election for Delegate from the Territory of Alaska, provided 
by “An Act providing for the election of a Delegate to the House 
of Representatives from the Territory of Alaska,” approved May 
seventh, nineteen hundred and six, shall be held on the Tuesday 
next after the first Monday in November in the year nineteen 
hundrd and fourteen, and every second year thereafter on the said 
Tuesday next after the first Monday in November, and all of the 
provisions of the aforesaid Act shall continue to be in full force 
and effect and shall apply to the said election in every respect 
as is now provided for the election to be held in the month of 
August therein; Provided, That the time for holding an election in 
said Territory for Delegate in Alaska to the House of Represen¬ 
tatives to fill a vacancy, whether such vacancy is caused by failure 
to elect at the time prescribed by law, or by the death, resigna¬ 
tion, or incapacity of a person elected, may be prescribed by an 
act passed by the Legislature of the Territory of Alaska: Pro¬ 
vided, further, That when such election is held it shall be gov¬ 
erned in every respect by the laws passed by Congress governing 
such election. 

See. 18. That an officer of the Engineer Corps of the United 
States Army, a geologist in charge of Alaska surveys, and officer 
in the Engineer Corps of the United States Navy, and a civil 
engineer who has had practical experience in railroad construc¬ 
tion and has not been connected with any railroad enterprise 
in said Territory be appointed by the President as a commission 
hereby authorized and instructed to conduct an examination into 
the transportation question in the Territory of Alaska; to exam¬ 
ine railroad routes from the seaboard to the coal fields and to the 
interior and navigable waterways; to' secure surveys and other 
information with respect to railroads, including cost of con¬ 
struction and operation; to obtain information in respect to the 
coal fields and their proximity to railroad routes; and to make 
report of the facts to Congress on or before the first day of De¬ 
cember, nineteen hundred and twelve, or as soon thereafter as 
may be practicable, together with their conclusions and recom¬ 
mendations in respect to the best and most available routes for 
railroads in Alaska which will develop the country and the re¬ 
sources thereof for the use of the people ,of the United States: 
Provided further, That the sum of twenty-five thousand dollars, 
or so much thereof as may be necessary, is hereby appropriated, 
out of any money in the Treasury not otherwise appropriated to 
defray the expenses of said commission. 

Sec. 19. That the Committee on Territories of the Senate 
and Committee on Territories of the House of Representatives are 
hereby authorized, empowered, and directed to jointly codify, 
compile, publish, and annotate all the laws of the United States 
applicable to the Territory of Alaska, and said committees are 
jointly authorized to employ such assistance as may be necessary 
for that purpose; and the sum of five thousand dollars, or so much 
thereof as may be necessary, is hereby appropriated, to cover the 
expenses of said work, which shall be paid upon vouchers properly 
signed and approved by the chairmen of said committees. 

Sec. 20. That all laws passed by the Legislature of the Ter¬ 
ritory of Alaska shall be submitted to the Congress by the Presi¬ 
dent of the United States, a.nd if, disapproved by Congress, they 
shall be null and of no effect. 

Approved, August 24, 1912. 



CIVIL GOVERNMENT OF ALASKA 


31 


AMENDMENT TO ORGANIC ACT. 

Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 

United States of America in Congress Assembled: 

That nothing in that Act of Congress entitled “An Act 
creating a legislative assembly in the Territory of Alaska and 
conferring legislative power thereon, and for other purposes,” 
approved August twenty-fourth, nineteen hundred and twelve, 
shall be so construed as to prevent the courts now existing or 
that may be hereafter created in said Territory from enforcing 
within their respective jurisdictions’ all laws passed by the leg¬ 
islature within the power conferred upon it, the same as if such 
laws were passed by Congress, nor to prevent the legislature pass¬ 
ing laws imposing additional duties, not inconsistent with the 
present duties of their respective offices, upon the governor, 
marshals, deputy marshals, clerks of the district courts, and 
United States commissioners acting as justices of the peace, judges 
of probate courts, recorders, and coroners, and providing the neces¬ 
sary expenses of performing such duties, and in the prosecuting 
of all crimes denounced by Territorial laws the cost shall be paid 
th same as is now or may hereafter be provided by Act of Congress 
providing for the prosecution of criminal offenses in said Terri¬ 
tory, except that in prosecutions growing out of any revenue law 
passed by the legislature the costs shall be paid as in civil actions 
and such prosecutions shall be in the name of the Territory. 

Approved, August 2 9, 1914. 

AMENDMENT TO ORGANIC ACT. 

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 

United States of America in Congress Assembled'; 

That the Legislature of Alaska is hereby empowered to es¬ 
tablish and maintain schools for white and colored children and 
children of mixed blood who lead a civilized life in said Territory 
and to make appropriations of Territorial funds for that purpose; 
and all laws or parts of laws in conflict with this act are to 
that extent repealed. 

Approved, March 3, 1917. 

DEPARTMENTS OF GOVERNMENT. 

There are three departments of government represented in 
Alaska as in each of the States, and in the United States Govern¬ 
ment They are the executive, legislative, and judicial depart¬ 
ments. Alaska differs from a State, however, in that the legis¬ 
lative department is the only one that is strictly under the con¬ 
trol of the people of Alaska, and then only in the matter of the 
selection of the members of the Legislature whose acts are sub¬ 
ject to veto by the Governor, who is appointed by the President 
of the United States, or to nuulification by Congress. 

Executive Department. 

GOVERNOR. 

The Governor of Alaska is chief executive officer of the 
Territory. He is appointed by the President of the United States, 
by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, for a term of 



32 


CIVIL GOVERNMENT OF ALASKA 


four years, and until his successor is appointed and qualified. He 
is paid a salary of $7,000 per annum, and has the powers analagous 
to those of a Governor of a State or Territory. (See any standard 
Civics textbook.) The following special powers and duties are 
given to Alaska’s Governor: 

1. Ex-officio Superintendent of Public Instruction. 

2. Make annual report to the Secretary of the Interior. 

3. Appoint notaries public. 

4. Transmit laws passed by the Legislature to the President 
of the United States and to the Secretary of State. 

5. Issue licenses to non-resident hunters and to shippers 
of big game. 

6. Recommend game wardens for appointment in each judi¬ 
cial division. 

7. Appoint special agents for the suppression of the liquor 
traffic in each judicial division. 

8. Make provisions in conjunction with the Secretary of the 
Interior for the care of Alaska insane. 

9. Custodian of Alaska Library and Museum. 

10. Lease school lands. 

11. Appoint trustees of Alaska Agricultural College and 
School of Mines. 

12. Service on a number of boards created by the Territorial 
Legislature. 

SURVEYOR-GENERAL AND SECRETARY OF ALASKA. 

The Surveyor-General, and ex-officio Secretary of Alaska, is 
appointed by the President with the advice and consent of the 
Senate for a term of four years. He receives an annual salary of 
$4,000 from the Federal Government and $2,000 from the Ter¬ 
ritory for additional compensation as Secretary of Alaska and 
member of Territorial boards. This official, as Secretary of Alaska, 
performs such duties as are usually performed by the secretary 
of state in the average State or Territory. (See any standard 
Civics textbook). His duties also partake of the nature of those 
of a lieutenant-governor in that he is acting-governor of Alaska 
during the absence from the Territory of the Chief executive or 
in case of the death or resignation of this official. 

The duties of the Surveyor-General’s office consist of an exam¬ 
ination of government surveys in Alaska, preparation of plats, trans- 
scription of field notes of surveyors and the like. 

The Secretary of Alaska is a member of a number of Terri¬ 
torial boards. 

ATTORNEY-GENERAL. 

The Attorney-General is elected by the qualified voters of 
Alaska for a term of four years. He is paid an annual salary 




CIVIL GOVERNMENT OF ALASKA 


33 


of $5,000. His duties are analagous to those of an Attorney- 
General in the States. 

TERRITORIAL TREASURER. 

The Territorial Treasurer is appointed by the Governor, by 
and with the advice and consent of the Territorial Senate, for a 
term of four years. He serves as a member of the banking and 
other boards. A salary of $5,000 per annum is paid this official, 
$4,000 of which is for service as Treasurer of Alaska and $1,000 
as member of various Territorial boards. He is collector of taxes 
and custodian of the moneys of the Territory and disburses the 
same as appropriated by the Legislature. 

TERRITORIAL MINE INSPECTOR. 

The Territorial Mine Inspector, and ex-officio Labor Commis¬ 
sioner, is appointed by the Governor for a term of two years. 
He receives a salary of $3,000 per annum. His duties include a 
general inspection of mines with particular attention to such 
matters as timbering, ventilation, and the means in use for the 
preservation and safety of the employees. He collects and com¬ 
piles statistics relating to the mines of the Territory and keeps 
in touch with means for furthering the mining industry. 

As Labor Commissioner, he is empowered to enforce sanitary 
regulations affecting canneries, factories, or other establishments, 
where labor is employed, and is required to collect and compile 
statistics relating “to the industrial, social, and sanitary condi¬ 
tions of the laboring classes,” and to report the same to the 
Governor bi-ennially. 

COMMISSIONER OF EDUCATION. 

The Commissioner of Education is appointed by the Territorial 
Board of Education for a term of two years. He receives a salary 
of $4,000 per annum. He is the executive officer of the Terri¬ 
torial Board of Education, and exercises general supervision over 
all public educational institutions. 

COMMISSIONER OF HEALTH. 

The Commissioner of Health is appointed by the Governor 
for a term of two years. He receives a salary of $1,800 per an¬ 
num. The Governor also appoints three Assistant Commissioners 
of Health, one for each judicial division except the First at a 
salary of $400 per annum, and for a term of two years. The 
Commissioner of Health has “general supervision of the interests 
of health and life of the citizens of the Territory.” 

Legislative Department. 

The Territorial Legislature is bi-cameral and consists of a 
Senate and House of Representatives The Senate consists of 



34 


CIVIL GOVERNMENT OF ALASKA 


eight members, two from each judicial division into which Alaska 
is divided by Act of Congress, and the House of Representatives 
of sixteen members, four from each judicial division. Senators 
are elected by the qualified electors of the respective divisions for 
a term of four years, and representatives for a term of two years. 
Qualifications of members of the Legislature are as follows: 

Each member must have at the time of his election the 
qualifications of an elector in Alaska, and shall have been a resi¬ 
dent and an inhabitant in the division from which he is elected 
for at least two years prior to the date of his election. 

The Legislature convenes at the capitol on the first Monday 
in March in odd numbered years The regular session lasts- sixty 
days. Special sessions may be called by the Governor on thirty 
days’ notice to each member. Such sessions may not last longer 
than fifteen days. 

Each legislator receives a salary of $15.00 per day for each 
day's attendance while the Legislature is in session, and mileage, 
in addition, at the rate of fifteen cents per mile for each mile from 
his home to the capitol and return by the nearest traveled route. 
Each nouse employs such clerks and assistants as are usually em¬ 
ployed by Legislatures. A Congressional appropriation covers 
practically the entire cost of the legislative session. The appro¬ 
priation is disbursed by the Governor. 

The Organic Act prohibits legislation by the Legislature 
modifying, amending, or repealing laws of the United States re¬ 
lating to customs, internal revenue, postal service, game, fish and 
fur-seal, fur-bearing animals, insane persons, taxes on business 
and trade, construction and maintenance of roads, and the 
authority, jurisdiction or functions exercised by the judges and 
officers of the district court of Alaska. Numerous other limita¬ 
tions in legislative power also are set forth as, for example, no 
tax shall be imposed on the propetry of the United States; no 
divorce shall be granted by the Legislature, nor shall any di¬ 
vorce be granted by the courts of the Territory, unless the ap¬ 
plicant therefor shall have resided in the Territory for two years 
next preceding the application; no lottery or the sale of lottery 
tickets shall be allowed; and no public money shall be appro¬ 
priated by the Territory or any municipal corporation thprein 
for the benefit of any sectarian, denominational or private school, 
or any school not under the exclusive control of the government. 

Procedure in the two Houses is the same as in State Legis¬ 
latures, and bills become laws by the same process. (See any 
standard Civics textbook). 

The Governor has the power to veto any bill passed by the 
Legislature. He may veto any specific item or items in any bill 
which appropriates money for specific purposes, but must veto 
other bills, if at all, only as a whole. A vetoed bill may become 




CIVIL GOVERNMENT OF ALASKA 


35 


a law if subsequently passed by a two-thirds vote of all the mem¬ 
bers of each house. Failure of the Governor to either sign or 
veto a bill within three days (Sunday excepted) after it is de¬ 
livered to him makes it a law. Congress has the right to dis¬ 
approve, and thus render null and void, any law passed by the 
Territorial Legislature. 

Judicial Department. 

DISTRICT COURT. 

District court judges are appointed by the President, by and 
with the advice and consent of the Senate, to preside over the 
district court in each of the four judicial divisions into which 
Alaska is divided. The appointment covers a period of four years, 
and until successors are appointed and qualified. District judges 
receive a salary of $7,500 per annum. 

Other officials connected with the judicial department who 
are appointed in the same manner and for the same period as 
district judges are four district attorneys and four United States 
marshals, one for each judicial division in Alaska. District at¬ 
torneys receive a salary of $5,000 per annum and United States 
Marshals, $4,000 per annum. 

The district judge designates the boundaries of precincts 
over which United States Commissioners shall have jurisdiction 
in certain mattefs, and appoints a sufficient number of these 
officials to properly conduct the business of the judicial division. 
He also appoints a clerk of the court who performs such duties 
as are required or authorized by law to be performed by United 
States district court clerks. 

The Attorney-General of the United States is empowered, on 
recommendation of the district attorneys in the respective judicial 
divisions to appoint and fix the salary of one or more assistant 
district attorneys for each judicial division. Each United States 
marshal is required to appoint, subject to the approval of /lie 
Attorney-General, such deputy marshals as may be necessary tor 
the efficient execution of the law. 

JURISDICTION OF DISTRICT COURT. 

District courts sit in a dual capacity, namely as Federal 
district courts and as Territorial courts, the same judge presiding 
over both phases of the incident jurisdiction. The district court 
has general jurisdiction in civil, criminal, equity and admiralty 
cases. It is an appellate court in the case of criminal or civil 
cases taken from the commissioner’s court, or municipal courts 
on appeal. In all instances of appeal from a commissioner’s or a 
municipal court, the case is tried anew. 

An appeal may be made from the decision of the district court 
to the Circuit Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit (San Fran- 




36 


CIVIL GOVERNMENT OF ALASKA 


cisco) in all criminal cases and in civil cases where the amount 
involved or the value of subject matter in controversy is in ex¬ 
cess of $500. Appeals and writs of error may be taken directly 
from the district court to the Supreme Court of the United States 
in prize oases and in all cases in which a question as to the con¬ 
stitutionality of a law or the construction or application of the 
Constitution of the United States is involved. 

COMMISSIONER’S COURT. 

United States commissioners are ex-officio justices of the peace, 
probate judges, coroners and recorders. 

As justice of the peace, the jurisdiction of the commissioner’s 
court extends over all civil cases where the amount involved is 
not more than $1,000. In criminal cases, his jurisdiction ex¬ 
tends only to certain kinds of cases, the punishment for which 
cannot be greater than imprisonemnt in the federal jail or fine 
or both. The commissioner serves in the capacity of committing 
magistrate in the case of more serious crimes, in which capacity 
he determines whether there are reasonable grounds for believing 
the defendant guilty and, if so, binds Mm over to the district 
court to await the action of the grand jury. Appeals may be taken 
from the commissioner’s court to the district court in all criminal 
cases and in civil cases where the amount involved is at least 
$50 and costs. 

As probate judge, the commissioner has jurisdiction in the 
settlement of all estates of deceased persons and to care for es¬ 
tates of minors and insane persons. 

As coroner, the commissioner is empowered to inquire into the 
cause of mysterious deaths. 

As recorder, the commissioner must keep a memorandum of 
all deeds and other instruments' of writing required to be re¬ 
corded or filed, and relating to the title to or transfer of property 
within his district. Such records are open to public inspection. 

MUNICIPAL COURTS. 

The act permitting the incorporation of municipalities pro¬ 
vides that a municipal magistrate may be appointed by the city 
council. This official has jurisdiction in all actions for violation 
of municipal ordinances. Appeal may be taken from his judgment 
to the district court. By Territorial statute, municipal councils 
are empowered to confer upon municipal magistrates, jurisdiction 
in civil actions upon contract where the amount involved does not 
exceed $100. 

DELEGATE FROM ALASKA 

Alaska is represented in the House of Representatives of the 
United States by a Delegate, who is elected by the qualified elect¬ 
ors for a term of two years. Such delegate must at the time of 




CIVIL GOVERNMENT OF ALASKA 


37 


his election have been a citizen of the United States for seven 
years, a qualified voter in Alaska, and not less than twenty-five 
years of age. He receives a salary of $7,500 per annum, and has 
all the powers and privileges of a member of the House of Rep¬ 
resentatives from one of the States with the exception of the fact 
that he has no vote, and no voice in the House except when the 
same is in the committee of the whole. 

SYSTEM OF ELECTIONS. 

Primary Elections. 

A primary election for the purpose of choosing party candi¬ 
dates for the office of delegate to Congress and all other elective 
Territorial or divisional offices is held biennially throughout 
Alaska on the last Tuesday in April of even-numbered years. 
Candidates are required to file a “Declaration of Candidacy” stat¬ 
ing the office for which they are aspirants and the party ticket 
on which they wish their name to appear, not less than sixty 
days before the date of the primary election. Official ballots 
and separate ballot boxes are provided for each political party. 

General Election. 

A general election for the purpose of choosing members of 
the Legislature, a delegate to Congress, and all other Territorial 
or divisional officers, is held on the first Tuesday following the 
first Monday in November in even-numbered years. Only persons 
duly selected at the primary election as candidates of the various 
parties may have their names on the official general election 
ballot as having party affiliation. Independent candidates may 
appear on the official ballot without party affiliations provided 
they filed declarations of candidacy on or prior to the date 
r.t the primary election. The members of the Legislature, chosen 
at this time, are officially accredited as such on the first Mon¬ 
day in March, the Attorney-General on March first, and the 
Delegate to Congress on March fourth following the date of the 
general election. 

Qualifications of Electors. 

Any citizen of the United States twenty-one years of age and 
over who is a bona fide resident of Alaska, and who has been 
such a resident continuously during the entire year immediately 
preceding the election, and who has been a resident of the precinct 
in which he or she votes for a period of thirty days next pre¬ 
ceding the election, is a qualified elector and entitled to vote in 
in any general or special election in Alaska. 

System of Voting. 

The Australian ballot system is employed at all elections. 
None but official ballots can be used by voters. The Alaska ballot 



38 


CIVIL GOVERNMENT OF ALASKA 


is modeled after tlie so-called Massachusetts ballot with the names 
of candidates arranged alphabetically under the title of the offices 
for which they are candidates. 

Elective Officials. 

TERRITORIAL: 

Delegate to Congress. 

Attorney General for Alaska. (Elected every four 
years only.) 

DIVISIONAL: 

(Elected in each division at each general election.) 

MEMBERS OF LEGISLATURE: 

Senator (1). 

Representatives (4). 

Divisional Road Commissioners (2). 

MUNICIPAL GOVERNMENT. 

Incorporated Towns. 

The federal statutes provide that any community in Alaska 
having three hundred dr more permanent inhabitants may in¬ 
corporate as a municipal corporation. The statutes further pro¬ 
vide for the election of a common council of seven members to 
serve for one year. The council elect one of their own members 
as president of the body and ex-officio mayor. Annual elections 
are held on the first Tuesday of April. The Territorial statutes 
permit of a second type of organization in which a mayor is 
elected by the qualified voters for a term of one year, and six 
councilmen for a term of two years each. The terms of the 
lust Six councilmen are so arranged that after the first election 
a mayor and three councilmen are elected each year. It is op 
tional with cities as to whether or not they adopt this form of 
organization. Some Alaska cities are organized under the form 
provided by the Federal statutes and some have adopted the or¬ 
ganization provided by Territorial law. In either event the powers 
of the council are identical. 

Powers of Common Council. 

The Common Council is empowered by Federal statute to ap¬ 
point a clerk, a treasurer, an assessor, a municipal magistrate, a 
municipal attorney, a chief of police, and such other officers and 
employees as may be necessary. 

They are empowered to levy and collect a general tax on real 
and personal property for school and municipal purposes, not to 
exceed two per centum of the assessed valuation of such prop¬ 
erty; to provide for the construction and maintenance of streets, 
alleys, sewers, wharves, sidewalks, etc.; to provide for the loca¬ 
tion and construction, for a limited distance and to a limited 




CIVIL GOVERNMENT OF ALASKA 


39 


extent, of trails and wagon roads, outside of the limits of the 
town; to provide for fire protection, water supply, lights, wharfage, 
public health, police protection and the relief of the destitute 
and indigent; to levy and collect a poll tax of not less than two 
dollars nor more than four dollars per year on all male resi¬ 
dents over twenty-one and under fifty years of age; to make 
provision for the maintenance of a municipal jail; to prohibit 
drunkenness, gambling, houses or places of ill fame, disorderly 
conduct, and the like; to pass and enforce ordinances necessary 
to protect and preserve the lives, the health, the safety and the 
well-being of the residents of the municipality; and to establish 
school districts, to provide school houses, and to maintain public 
schools therein and provide the necessary funds for schools which 
shall be under the supervision and control of a school board of 
three members. 

Common councils are prohibited from issuing bonds or in¬ 
curring bonded indebtedness. 

The Territorial laws empower common councils to license, 
tax, restrain or prohibit peddling, hawking on or in the streets 
of the town or at any public place within the corporate limits, 
and to tax auctioneers, itinerant vendors and persons engaged 
in a temporary or transient business of vending or selling mer¬ 
chandise within the municipality; to establish, maintain and con¬ 
trol lighterage plants; to establish and maintain, on authoriza¬ 
tion by the qualified electors of the municipality, public wood, 
coal or fuel yards; to grant franchises to public utilities corpora¬ 
tions for a period of not to exceed twenty years, which franchises 
must be ratified by a majority vote of the qualified electors of 
the municipality; and to levy and collect a dog tax or license 
of not more than six dollars per year. 

School Boards. 

School boards consist of three members—.a director, a treas¬ 
urer, and a clerk. Members are elected for a term of three years. 
One member, therefore, is elected annually at each general muni¬ 
cipal election. All money available for general school mainten¬ 
ance as apportioned by the city council, is expended under the 
direction of the school board. School buildings and sites are ac¬ 
quired by the common council. School boards are empowered to 
employ the necessary teachers and other employees, and to do 
everything necessary to the maintenance of a school. 

Qualifications of Electors 

No person is entitled to vote in any municipal or school elec¬ 
tion who is not a citizen of the United States, a bona fide resident 
of the Territory of Alaska for one year, and of the incorporated 
town in which the election is held, for six months immediately 
preceding the date of the election. 



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